Animal Talk

       People have always been interested in animal communication and scientists have done a lot of research on this subject.

       Most animals communicate by smell. Dogs are famous for this. When a dog walks outside, it learns about other dogs by smelling things. Dogs have helped the police for a long time, too. They can find missing people by using their fantastic sense of smell. Mice have an excellent sense of smell, too. Scientists have even trained them to find landmines（地雷）. Scientists have discovered that even ants use smell. They use smell to tell other ants where the food is.

       Everyone has heard birds singing. Research has shown that many other animals use sound to communicate. Frogs and insects communicate with sounds. Usually the "gentlemen" make sounds to invite the "ladies". Whales and elephants also use sound to communicate. These sounds can travel very far through water or the ground. However, it is not possible for humans to hear some of the sounds. They are either too low or too high for us.

       Animals have always used body language to communicate as well. When a cat puts its ears back, it is a bit mad. When it sits with its tail around itself, it is happy. When a dog puts its tail under its body, it is scared. When it wags(摆动) its tail and opens its mouth, it is happy.